"Functionality is exactly the same," eh? So does this mean a 2-Tuner Premiere, along with a TiVo Stream (both of which I have,) will eventually allow me to do streaming away from home as well? Fingers crossed.

I also note this, and the curious wording:

That the note specifically mentions both TiVo Premiere as well as Premiere 4 Tuner makes me think that perhaps, now with dynamic tuner allocation, that a 2-Tuner Premiere might be able to connect to a TiVo Mini. Yes, I realize that they may be talking about one Premiere doing Multi-Room Streaming with another Premiere. But that this FAQ doesn't specifically note that a 4-Tuner Premiere is required to work with a Mini, makes me wonder, hopefully, if that is no longer a valid requirement.

Oh TiVo, please, don't screw this up for us. We've been disappointed for too long and I'm not going to buy a whole new TiVo (and deal with failing at transferring over my library of recordings) just to get features we should have had from the start.

Yes, the Stream uses the exact same transcoding chip that is used in the Roamio Plus and Pro models. The Tivo Stream will continue being a viable platform and will maintain feature parity with the integrated streaming chips in the newer Roamio.

In fact, the reviewers who tested the out of home streaming used the TiVo Stream with a special update that enabled it.

That's good to hear. I have no plans to upgrade to a Roamio but if its release means my 2-Tuner Premiere with 2TB drive + TiVo Stream gets new features (outside streaming, and perhaps, compatibility with a TiVo Mini) then I'm a happy camper!

I wouldn't count on the compatibility with the Mini. The Mini was advertised heavily as requiring a 4 tuner TiVo, it was even printed on the box. So even with dynamic tuner allocation they may decide to hold the line on that one to entice people to upgrade.

Although I hope I'm wrong. I have a 4 tuner TiVo, but my wife is the one who uses the Mini most often and she has her own 2 tuner Premiere. It would be nicer for her if I could pair the Mini with her 2 tuner instead of it having to be paired to mine and then her having to go an extra menu deep to watch her shows.

It's likely that the Mini will still require a 4 Tuner TiVo DVR to pair to. The relaxing of the language is probably due to the fact that TiVo no longer offers any DVRs that have less than 4 tuners, so they don't need to specify that anymore.

Because the Premiere is a 3 year old device running an incredibly slow processor that can't possibly be tasked with running a browser. It couldn't even run the Flash UI well and that was designed and released with the Premiere.

HTML 5 has some significant CPU requirements, and the Roamio line satisfies those requirements, the Premiere does not.

I guess the question really being asked then is, why does DIAL (essentially, the slinging of a URL for MP4-based video streaming from the receiver device) require an HTML5 framework?

It doesn't require it. But the current AdobeAir based apps would all need to be updated to support it individually. TiVo hasn't really had the best luck with keeping those apps up to date which is why they are switching to HTML5 in the first place. With HTML5 the developers can reuse the same app for multiple platforms so it's much more likely to get updated.

I would think they would want to port the HTML5 apps to the Premier line. Is there a technical reason to prohibit that?

The CPU in the Premiere doesn't have enough horsepower to run the browser needed to run HTML5 apps. The only reason it can even run the Flash apps is because there is a special part of the CPU designed specifically to run Flash, and even that is terrible.

It doesn't require it. But the current AdobeAir based apps would all need to be updated to support it individually. TiVo hasn't really had the best luck with keeping those apps up to date which is why they are switching to HTML5 in the first place. With HTML5 the developers can reuse the same app for multiple platforms so it's much more likely to get updated.

Right, I get that, but DIAL (the protocol behind Chromecast) isn't a front-facing app per se, it is a service running in the background. It merely needs to be running invisibly (like a daemon,) advertising its availability to the Chrome instances (and iOS/Android apps) on the network, so they can cast to it.

That being said, this is TiVo, and all bets are off when it comes to "what new features from Roamio make their way to the old Premiere line?" It's entirely feasible (and likely) that we'll get NOTHING.

Me, I'd be happy if all I got was the ability to use my Premiere and Stream outside the house.

If I could use a Mini with my 2-tuner Premiere, I'd be over the moon, but I'm not holding my breath.

The CPU in the Premiere doesn't have enough horsepower to run the browser needed to run HTML5 apps. The only reason it can even run the Flash apps is because there is a special part of the CPU designed specifically to run Flash, and even that is terrible.

I suppose that surprises me - I know flash is a resource hog so I expected that it would handle the HTML apps better then the flash apps...

I know the processor performance is just below the iPhone 3GS.

When trying to open an App Store (or any individual app), the number of units deployed is a huge driver.

Right, I get that, but DIAL (the protocol behind Chromecast) isn't a front-facing app per se, it is a service running in the background. It merely needs to be running invisibly (like a daemon,) advertising its availability to the Chrome instances (and iOS/Android apps) on the network, so they can cast to it.

That being said, this is TiVo, and all bets are off when it comes to "what new features from Roamio make their way to the old Premiere line?" It's entirely feasible (and likely) that we'll get NOTHING.

I don't think we'll get any of the special app features. I think we'll see the additional HD screens, DTA for Minis and maybe the slight aesthetic changes they made to the UI. But other then that expect all new features to be exclusive to the Roamio. TiVo is all about the upsell, that's what keeps them in business. (well and patent lawsuits )

I suppose that surprises me - I know flash is a resource hog so I expected that it would handle the HTML apps better then the flash apps...

I know the processor performance is just below the iPhone 3GS.

When trying to open an App Store (or any individual app), the number of units deployed is a huge driver.

You have to remember that on an iPhone there is no multi-tasking. Basically 100% of the resources are dedicated to whatever app is running in the foreground. A TiVo is the exact opposite. The vital background tasks for recording and streaming take priority over all else. The amount of resources dedicated to apps is miniscule.

I don't think we'll get any of the special app features. I think we'll see the additional HD screens, DTA for Minis and maybe the slight aesthetic changes they made to the UI. But other then that expect all new features to be exclusive to the Roamio. TiVo is all about the upsell, that's what keeps them in business. (well and patent lawsuits )

Really? I don't see any sign that it's about the upsell. They lose substantial money on most of their hardware sales, and that money is never recouped for those folks (about half) that go monthly - they would be paying the same in any case. They do get some extra money from the likes of tivocommunity folks who go lifetime, but we're not their average customers.

I agree with your overall assessment of what's going to happen, but I think it's much more expense avoidance, and keeping focused on how things are changing than it is trying to sell replacement units units.

Really? I don't see any sign that it's about the upsell. They lose substantial money on most of their hardware sales, and that money is never recouped for those folks (about half) that go monthly - they would be paying the same in any case. They do get some extra money from the likes of tivocommunity folks who go lifetime, but we're not their average customers.

Most people who buy a new TiVo pass their old one on to another customer, so TiVo ends up with two customers where they previously had one. Plus for lifetime units the revenue is written off after 4 years, so if they can get those customers to buy a new TiVo every 4 years then they get some new revenue on the books. In the long run it may not be a huge boon for them, but in the short term it's probably a big influx of cash.

Most people who buy a new TiVo pass their old one on to another customer, so TiVo ends up with two customers where they previously had one. Plus for lifetime units the revenue is written off after 4 years, so if they can get those customers to buy a new TiVo every 4 years then they get some new revenue on the books. In the long run it may not be a huge boon for them, but in the short term it's probably a big influx of cash.

Effective November 1, 2011, we have extended the period we use to recognize product lifetime subscription revenues from 60 months to 66 months for product lifetime subscriptions.

Yes, and it was 48 months for a long time before the 60 months and I think I remember 3 years when they first started.

I've never known whether this was a change demanded by the accountants, or whether it was TiVo wanting to lessen the number of non-paying subscriptions they report to the analysts every quarter. The shorter time periods were an advantage during the period where they had to show some capability of breaking even (ie, before any court settlements).